Money Laundering
US recovers $225 million of crypto stolen in investment scams
The U.S. Department of Justice has seized more than $225 million in cryptocurrency linked to investment fraud and money laundering operations, the largest crypto seizure in the history of the U.S. Secret Service. The state’s investigators used blockchain analysis to trace the funds stolen from over 400 victims, which were then laundered through a complex […]
Five plead guilty to laundering $36 million stolen in investment scams
Five men from China, the United States, and Turkey pleaded guilty to their involvement in an international crime ring and laundering nearly $37 million stolen from U.S. victims in cryptocurrency investment scams carried out from Cambodia. Accomplices living abroad reached out to targets in the United States via unsolicited social media, phone calls, text messages, […]
Germany takes down eXch cryptocurrency exchange, seizes servers
The Federal police in Germany (BKA) seized the server infrastructure and shut down the ‘eXch’ cryptocurrency exchange platform for alleged money laundering cybercrime proceeds. During the law enforcement operation, the authorities also seized eight terabytes of data and cryptocurrency (Bitcoin, Ether, Litecoin, and Dash) worth approximately $38,000,000, making this the third largest seizure of digital assets […]
Grinex exchange suspected rebrand of sanctioned Garantex crypto firm
A new cryptocurrency exchange named Grinex is believed to be a rebrand of Garantex, a Russian cryptocurrency exchange whose domains were seized by the U.S. authorities and an admin arrested. According to a new report by blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs, Grinex shows strong ties to Garantex’s previous operations but has not determined if it’s […]
OKX suspends DEX aggregator after Lazarus hackers try to launder funds
OKX Web3 has decided to suspend its DEX aggregator services to implement security upgrades following reports of abuse by the notorious North Korean Lazarus hackers, who recently conducted a $1.5 billion crypto heist. OKX is a leading global cryptocurrency exchange that offers a wide range of trading options, including spot and derivatives trading and decentralized […]
Ransomware payments fell by 35% in 2024, totalling $813,550,000
Payments to ransomware actors decreased 35% year-over-year in 2024, totaling $813.55 million, down from $1.25 billion recorded in 2023. Additionally, only about 30% of victims engaged in negotiations with ransomware actors ended up paying any ransom to them. These figures are reported by blockchain intelligence firm Chainalysis, underlining a significant decline in an otherwise record-breaking year for […]
US offers $5 million for info on North Korean IT worker farms
The U.S. State Department is offering a reward of up to $5 million for information that could help disrupt the activities of North Korean front companies and employees who generated over $88 million via illegal remote IT work schemes in six years. The two companies, Chinese-based Yanbian Silverstar and Volasys Silverstar from Russia, tricked businesses worldwide […]
UK disrupts Russian money laundering networks used by ransomware
A law enforcement operation led by the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA) has disrupted two Russian money laundering networks working with criminals worldwide, including ransomware gangs. Dubbed “Operation Destabilise,” this international investigation has led to the arrest of 84 Russian-speaking suspects linked to the Smart (led by Ukrainian George Rossi) and TGR (controlled by […]